


Marked

by rangerkier



Category: BomBARDed (Podcast)
Genre: Gen, Mild Angst, brief blood
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2019-09-05
Updated: 2019-09-05
Packaged: 2020-10-10 06:15:05
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 2,280
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/20523296
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/rangerkier/pseuds/rangerkier
Summary: Spoilers for Episode 37. Yashee knows she always has to keep her mark hidden, but she lets her guard down with her friends. She's pretty sure it's one of the worst possible people who ends up seeing it.





	Marked

It was a while ago now that Yashee had worked out that braiding hair calmed Raz’ul down. He usually worked with his own, filling it with intricate, interwoven plaits. But once, Yashee had watched him braid everything he could on his own head, and his hands were still fidgeting. So she asked if he would do her hair, trying to be surreptitious about her intentions. After that, it wasn’t unusual for him to braid her hair, or even Randy’s shorter locks if he was closer. 

And ever since Raz’ul had to return to the mountain, it seemed he’d been stressed almost unendingly. Which was why Yashee was sitting on the floor of the suite she and Randy were staying in. Raz’ul was on the couch behind her, quietly working on her hair while Randy played a soft melody from the chair opposite them. 

When a knock on the door interrupted their peaceful scene, Randy carefully set his organ on the table before going to answer it.

“Is the prince here?” was what she heard from the other side in lieu of a greeting. 

“Raz’ul?” Randy clarified. Not that it made much sense for one of Raz’ul’s brothers to be here. “Yeah.”

“My liege,” the dwarven guard spoke as he walked past Randy.

“Yes?” Raz’ul responded, pausing briefly in his work. He’d gotten better at speaking with the authority that seemed to be expected of him, but he still couldn’t match his father or his brothers. 

“Your father requests your presence this afternoon. You are to be at his office at three.”

“Understood,” Raz’ul continued manipulating her hair; she could feel as he gently pulled it away from her neck. But he was also good enough at braiding that he didn’t have to continually watch his hands to do so. He could be making eye contact even as he worked. 

There was a gasp and a worried call. “My liege!” Then Yashee was shoved, knocked away from Raz’ul. There was a tug on her hair as Raz’ul wasn’t able to let go fast enough. Yashee pushed herself up on her hands and looked around to find a sword point in her face. 

“Whoa!” Raz’ul exclaimed, jumping up between them. He recklessly, maybe thoughtlessly, pushed at the blade with his bare hand to get it out of her face. She thought she saw a flash of red, of blood, on his palm where it hit. “What are you doing?!”

“My liege, I insist you step away! You don’t know what we’re dealing with!”

“I know she’s my friend. And _I_ insist that you tell me what you think you’re doing!” he found the authority his voice had been lacking before. 

“She’s a member of the Vox Mort clan!” 

Yashee realized what had to have happened. The mark she kept hidden under her hair and clothing. When Raz’ul moved her hair to braid it, it must have been partially exposed. Even though her father had always ingrained in her that she had to keep it hidden, she was never worried about Raz’ul and Randy seeing it. They were her friends, surely it would be okay. So she hadn’t been concerned that Raz’ul might see it. She raised her hand to the mark, realizing too late that might not have been a good plan, that it could be viewed as some sort of guilt, a confession. 

“What? What are you talking about?”

“That mark. I’d recognize it anywhere,” there was hatred in the guard’s voice. “Even partially hidden like the beast had it.”

“Stop! She’s not a beast, she’s a person! She’s my friend, my family!”

The guard took a small step back, startled by the proclamation. Yashee was too, even though it wasn’t the first time he had said it. Hearing him say it to someone else, not just her and Randy, seemed to give it more meaning. 

“You don’t know what you’re saying. You’re blinded by your loyalty. She’s not your friend, she’s using you.”

“You don’t know her,” Raz’ul’s voice had turned into a growl. “Even if you were right, what do you think she’s going to do? She’s one person.”

“Gather information. Gain the trust of our prince,” he gave Raz’ul a meaningful look. 

“She’s not- You’re wrong.”

“I have to inform your father of this.”

“No!” suddenly Raz’ul’s voice was tinged with panic. Yashee didn’t know what he thought his father would do, but she didn’t think she wanted to. 

“You have to understand, my liege, this is a risk we can’t take. The Vox Mort clan decimated us, your ancestors lost their lives because of them.”

“She’s not a risk, she has nothing to do with some old battle. You can’t lock her up or- I won’t let you!”

“And just what you like to do about this?”

“She’ll leave.”

“Raz?!” she was supposed to just leave him here?

“Leave?” the guard wondered. 

“She can’t do anything to us if she’s not here. Her and Randy are only here for me, they don’t need to stay. They’ll leave, and you’ll have nothing to worry about.”

“Wait,” Randy tried to pipe up, since now he was supposed to be leaving despite not having a part in this. 

“How am I to know that she won’t return to her clan and give them what information she’s obtained? She could still be a problem.”

“She won’t, I swear. I swear on my life!”

It wasn’t like that was a wager he’d ever have to cash in on, but to hear him essentially bet his life for her safety made her heart surge with love. 

“Is that so?” the guard challenged.

“Yes,” Raz’ul didn’t back down.

The guard took a step back and sheathed his sword. “I want her gone by the end of the day. Then I’ll stay quiet about this.”

“Not a problem.”

After a small nod, the guard exited the room. Yashee watched Raz’ul visibly relax. Then he turned and looked at her with concern. 

“Are you okay?” he held his hands out to her to help her up.

“Yeah,” she took his hand and stood up, feeling blood rub off onto hers as she did so. “Raz, your hand.”

He looked down when she pointed it out, his expression confused. There was a cut across his palm, though it didn’t look too deep. “It’s nothing, I’ll deal with it later.”

“Let me see,” Randy walked around the table and took Raz’ul’s hand. “Do you know how bad a cut like this could mess up your hand?” He pulled is organ closer and played a quick tune. As the three of them watched, the cut sealed back up.

“Thanks,” Raz’ul pulled his hand back and grabbed it, stretching his fingers. 

“No problem. Anyway… Raz’ul did you mean that? Do you want us to leave?”

“Yes. I mean, Yashee _has_ to or-” he cut off, like he didn’t want to talk about what might happen to her.

“Why do you want me to go though? I mean, I want Yashee to be okay,” he looked up at her. “But what about you? Being back here’s been rough for you. Should we really leave you alone?”

“I want you both to be okay. The best way to guarantee that is for you to leave.”

“Why would anything happen to me, though?”

“I don’t know, man,” Raz’ul sounded exasperated, looking toward the door. When he continued, his voice was lowered, like he was worried about eavesdroppers. “Next thing we know, they’ll be finding out you were a Nowhere Man. As far as I know, we don’t have any specific grudges against them, but that doesn’t mean they’re not dangerous. Besides, it’s been over two years, who knows what I’ve missed. I just don’t want to take any chances, okay?”

Randy glanced back up at her and she gave a small shrug and a nod. “Okay,” he agreed with a sigh. “Will you be alright?”

“Yeah. I’ve dealt with this alone for the first eighteen years of my life, I can do it again. Besides, you guys can call me on the ireglass. That- would be really cool actually. So I know you’re okay.”

“Course,” Yashee put her hand on his shoulder and smiled at him.

Raz’ul looked up at her, his expression conflicted. He glanced back at the floor before speaking. “Yashee.. Are you actually part of the Vox Mort clan?”

“I mean, my mom is. I never knew her clan though. I didn’t even know their name until I pressed my dad when he visited us.”

“Why didn’t you tell us?”

“I was always supposed to hide the mark. My dad was worried what would happen if people found out. Makes sense, I guess,” she looked toward the door.

“To be fair, we haven’t been the most forthcoming either,” Randy pointed out.

“What do you mean?”

“Nowhere Man? Royalty?” he gestured between himself and Raz’ul. “Neither of us said anything until we ran into someone who forced our hand. This is just what forced Yashee’s hand.”

“That’s fair,” Raz’ul conceded with a small smile. 

“So,” Yashee looked around. “When do we leave then? After you’re done with your dad? So we can say goodbye?”

“I don’t know how long that will take though. And I don’t know what counts as the end of the day. I don’t want you guys to be waiting for me just for that guard to decide Yashee’s overstayed her welcome. If you actually want me to see you off, leaving sooner might be better.”

“But he said three. That basically gives us time to pack and leave.”

“I know,” Raz’ul met Randy’s eye, his expression downcast. 

“I-” Randy trailed off. 

“I guess we better start backing,” Yashee picked the thread back up. “So Raz’ul doesn’t have to go meet his dad before we’re ready.”

“Yeah,” Randy agreed quietly before starting to move around the room to find all his belongings that he’d scattered around. 

Yashee joined, picking things up from the common room before moving into the bedroom she’d been using. She gathered up her clothing, made sure she had any spoons she’d brought, plus the ones she’d stolen. A final check around the room, in the drawers and under the bed, and Yashee returned to the living room. 

Randy was already out there, sitting on the arm of the sofa with his shoulders drawn up a bit. Raz’ul was on the cushion on the other side; he glanced up when Yashee entered. 

“Are you both ready?”

Yashee nodded; Randy’s response was more of a shrug.

“I guess I’ll walk you guys out then.” He pushed himself to his feet and went to the door. After opening it, he looked back at them, waiting for them to follow. Randy jumped off his perch and walked past him, Yashee following behind. 

The walk through the halls was quiet. Yashee didn’t know how to breach it, how to gently bring up the fact that Randy still seemed unhappy with this situation. Especially since they kept passing residents of Mount Tain; if they brought up their reason for leaving and someone overheard, they could end up in trouble. 

Finally, they exited the cavernous halls, emerging into the crisp air. They all stopped, hanging around quietly like they were unsure what to say. Yashee looked at Raz’ul, at the way rubbed the back of his neck. 

“Are you sure about this?” she asked him. “Staying here alone?”

“I mean… I don’t want to be alone, honestly. But…” he shrugged, as though to say he had no choice. 

“Then don’t. It’s not like I can’t get back to school on my own. Randy can stay with you.” Randy glanced at her before watching Raz’ul. 

“I-” Raz’ul glanced around. Even outside, there were still people nearby. “I already said why he shouldn’t stay. What if someone finds out?”

“How will they?” Randy snapped. “All we have to do is not talk about it. It’s not like I have a mark like Yashee.”

“You have a tattoo on you back!” 

“They just put it there, it doesn’t have anything to do with them. Besides, when will anyone see my back? I’m not going-”

“Randy,” Raz’ul cut him off, his tone keeping him quiet. It wasn’t that royal authority he had trouble finding when he needed it, it was desperation. “Please. I know it’s not likely. But… I don’t think I could live with myself if something did happen to you. If I gave in, decided I’d rather have you here than know you were safe and you ended up hurt or locked up. Just… please.”

Yashee glanced between them, from Raz’ul’s pleading gaze to Randy’s, which was almost heartbroken. 

“I-”

“Besides, it’s not like I won’t have your support. We have the ireglasses. I can call you whenever I need, so…”

“Okay,” Randy relented. “I’ll go. Just make sure you do call us. You don’t have to deal with anything alone.”

“Of course. And you guys make sure to give me updates until you’re back at school. So I know how you’re doing.

“Yeah,” Yashee agreed, patting him on the shoulder. “We better go to make sure you’re not late meeting your dad.”

“Yeah,” Raz’ul stepped forward and wrapped his arms around her. Yashee smiled as she returned the embrace, motioning for Randy to join. They stayed still for a moment, holding each other. Then Raz’ul stepped back and she and Randy followed suite. 

“Anyway, take care on the road.”

“We’ll call you tonight.” Yashee took a step away from the mountain, away from her friend. Randy followed behind her. They glanced back as Raz’ul waved them goodbye, then turned and walked away.

**Author's Note:**

> Honestly, half the reason I wrote this is Raz'ul stimming by braiding is like my favorite headcanon and I needed to actually post something with that. The other half is my brain screaming about the potential drama between Raz'ul's and Yashee's families.


End file.
